I think it had two meanings depending on tone and situation. I know I've use it as a complement before say to describe someone's cooking- "Wow that's pretty good." I've also used it to describe a child's day at school that wasn't totally bad but could have been better. "He had pretty good day."

Did they promptly pay him for the job without openly expressing dissatisfaction with the job or threatening to post negative reviews on yelp or contact an attorney or something? If the answer is yes, and assuming he put his best effort into it and didn't try to rip anyone off, he should consider it a job well done and move on.

He's going to hear a lot worse than "Pretty good." doing any job on a regular basis that involves working with the public. A few years into what he's doing, he'll be pleased with that type of a reaction, I'd think.

Now, what were these people who said it thinking? Was it praise or grudging acceptance? Did they like the job done or dislike it? Who knows. Just take them at their word that it was "good", take the money they pay, and move on. That's my advice. Why overthink it and get worked up? It's not like they told him he did a horrible job and/or threatened to withhold payment.

Sorry Cubbysan, I know my interpretation of "pretty good" is probably not what you wanted to hear.

I think the expectations of the Homeowners is a bit unfair and/or unrealistic. DH and I have done tile work in our house, most people unless they have done it themselves, do not realize how tedious a job it is. It's not hard, but it is very time consuming and it takes a lot of patience. It's definitely a job you don't want to rush.

If you're trying to match tile with tile work that was previously done and especially if it's been several years, it's almost impossible to do unless you get the tile from the same lot.

I'm sure your husband takes a lot of pride in his work, I think most men do. I can understand his feelings.

Did they promptly pay him for the job without openly expressing dissatisfaction with the job or threatening to post negative reviews on yelp or contact an attorney or something? If the answer is yes, and assuming he put his best effort into it and didn't try to rip anyone off, he should consider it a job well done and move on.

He's going to hear a lot worse than "Pretty good." doing any job on a regular basis that involves working with the public. A few years into what he's doing, he'll be pleased with that type of a reaction, I'd think.

Now, what were these people who said it thinking? Was it praise or grudging acceptance? Did they like the job done or dislike it? Who knows. Just take them at their word that it was "good", take the money they pay, and move on. That's my advice. Why overthink it and get worked up? It's not like they told him he did a horrible job and/or threatened to withhold payment.

He has been doing this for over 30 years. This is the first time I have seen him upset at somebody's reaction. He is very good at what he does. I think he over reacted.